AROUND THE WORLD.

Tropical Storm Gamma weakens

November 21, 2005|By Items compiled from Tribune news services.

TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS — Tropical Storm Gamma weakened into a tropical depression Sunday and drifted off Honduras after torrential downpours lashed the Central American coast, killing 14 people, including a young family of four.

Gamma, the 24th named storm of a record-breaking Atlantic hurricane season, was expected to dissipate over the next day and was likely to miss Florida. But the storm was expected to bring steady rain to northern Honduras and central Cuba as it becomes less organized, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Gamma's maximum sustained winds decreased to 35 m.p.h., the hurricane center said. Forecasters said Gamma's projected path would carry it south of Jamaica by Wednesday.